Weingut Martin Furst, Elbling Trocken 2025 1L

100% Elbling

Upper Mosel, Germany

You’ve probably never heard of the “Upper Mosel.” I really hadn’t either. I mean, I knew it was there. I just didn’t know what was there.

As it turns out, what is there has nothing to do with everything we’ve ever been taught about the Mosel. In other words, the Upper Mosel has nothing to do with Riesling and nothing to do with slate. Instead, we find limestone. The Upper Mosel in fact represents the beginning of the Paris Basin, the geological reality that informs places like Chablis and Sancerre. Instead of Riesling, in the Upper Mosel we find a winemaking culture based on one of Europe’s oldest grapes: Elbling.

It’s important to understand that Elbling here feels like something of a religion. It’s a culture, a regional dialect that is spoken through this wine of rigorous purity, of joyous simplicity, of toothsome acidity. Even at its best, Elbling is not a grape of “greatness” as much as it is a grape of refreshment and honesty and conviviality. The comparisons are plenty, though none of them are quite right: If Riesling is Pinot Noir, then Elbling is Gamay. If Riesling is Sauvignon Blanc, then Elbling is Muscadet. You get the idea. The joy of Elbling is the uncompromising vigor and energy, the raucous and super-chalky acidity. Matthias Hild, who farms about five hectares in the sleepy town of Wincheringen, told me that back in the 1980s, when he’d have an Elbling clock in at less than 8.5 grams acid, he’d taste it and question if it was Elbling at all. Which is sort of like saying you’re not sure the music is loud enough because your ears aren’t bleeding.

Michael Fürst operates his small family winery, and focuses on growing and vinifying wine from the historic Elbling grape. The Fürst family has grown grapes and other crops at their estate in the Sauer Valley since the 13th century, and Michael is the third generation to make wine under the family name. He tends 12 hectares of Elbling, 70% of which are old vines, 25% between 10-20 years old, and 5% young. His total Elbling production is under 10,000 cases and the quality is high, vintage after vintage. We are very proud to represent one of the few small family wineries still working with this fascinating grape variety.